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I am an author, actor, and attorney living and loving in the DFW (metroplex) area. I love books, theatre, movies, and legalese. I've been in plays, short-films, feature films and when I am not working on my debut novel "Black Scorpion Trilogy Book 1: The Veil", I enjoy reviewing plays for The Column Online and representing the down-trodden in legal matters. Thanks for stopping by. If I can help you in anyway, just let me know. I'm your paraclete. -E-

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Reviewed by Eric A. Maskell, Associate
Theater Critic for John Garcia's THE
COLUMN

_____________________________FOOTLOOSE___________________________

Reviewed
by Eric A. Maskell, Associate Theater Critic for John Garcia's THE
COLUMN

Footloose, as produced by Artisan Center Theater, is the story of
one family and one town's journey to overcome loss and grief. The story centers
on a recently divorced Ethel and her spirited teenage son, Ren, as they move to
a small town from the big city of Chicago to escape the emotional demons of
their past. However, the small town of Bomont has its own emotional demons to
exorcise.

A few years back, a car accident resulted in the death of four
teenagers. It was alleged that the teens had been involved in alcohol and drug
use. After the accident, the town, led by Reverend Shaw, whose son was one of
the boys killed in the accident, sought to ban all "negative"; influences
that would affect their children. One of the many things banned for its negative
influence was dancing.

Upon Ren's arrival to the town he is considered a
"negative"; influenceand trouble maker for his modern ideas of freedom
and youthful exuberance.

It quickly becomes apparent that Ren's outgoing
personality is seen as a destructive force that Reverend Shaw must deal with
before his quiet town erupts into chaos.

The battle of wills between
Ren's youthful push for freedom of expression and Reverend Shaw's tyrannically
imposed iron grip of controlled safety is the battleground of our
musical.

Artisan Center Theater's rendition of Footloose was
excellent. DennisCanright did a masterful job directing. Canright's
creative blocking and scene changes were inspired. Add to the fact that Canright
also had a hand in the set design and you have a perfect foundation for this
high energy musical. The set design was well planned. The style of the set
pieces and the flexibility that Canright put into each was truly a work of art.

I especially enjoyed Scene 4 in which four girls on skates
sang"Somebody&#39;s Eyes".

The fluidity of the scene was
impressive. The girls skated in a large circle, singing. After a few lines of
song they skated off in one of the four directions while the lights came up in
an opposite corner where the other cast members acted out a high school scene.
It was a moving montage of complex choreography and it worked well. The only
down side to the scene was that Macy Rand, who played Rusty, appeared severely
unsure of herself on the skates and at one point fell. Rand's skating was very
unsteady and it impacted the fluidity of the scene as a whole.

Set
design and choreography was impressive in the diner during Scene 6: The Burger
Blast. During the song "Holding out for a Hero", the booth in which the four
girls sat was rotated and spun by ensemble cast members as they danced. At one
point Ren, played by Kevin Acosta, swung out from the side of the stage on a
rope while Ariel, played by Meredith Stowe, stood atop the rotating diner table
and sang "Holding Out for a Hero". An offstage smoke machine billowed smoke as
Ren swung into the diner in a true swashbuckling heroic manner. The moment was
exciting. The audience cheered. Well done Canright.

Finally, my favorite
piece of set design was in Act II Scene 4: Under the Train Bridge. During the
musical, the bridge was split into two pieces on either side of the west side of
the audience. From the beginning, it was impressive as just a part of the barn
or church but when it "transformed&quot; into the bridge where the
accident took place and was this massive construct in the middle of the stage,
it was awesome.

Ren and Ariel stood atop the bridge singing "Almost
Paradise" as the smoke from the river covered the ground. I got goose bumps. The
two young lovers, in this scene where they shared their pain, was beautiful.

The cast did a phenomenal job and maintained the high energy required
throughout the musical. A wonderful performance overall was by Mark Winter as
Reverend Shaw. Winter was the total package. He could sing, act and, in each
scene, be heard.

There were a few points in the musical in which other
actors' voices were lost in the crowd but Winter was clear and concise in every
scene. His rendition of "Heaven Help Me" in Act I, as he sang out for help from
God was, heartfelt and inspired. Winter was an excellent Reverend Shaw and a
real pleasure to watch.

Kevin Acosta did an excellent job as Ren. His
acting and singing abilities were outstanding. Acosta's dancing in Act I Scene
4: A High School Hallway was very well performed and his rendition of "I Can't
Stand Still" was great.

Meredith Stowe did a superb job in her
performance as Ariel. Stowe was believable and likable as a preacher kid with a
desire to escape the confines of small town living. The majority of Stowe's
songs was understated and could have been sung with greater intensity.

However, as stated previously, she had a couple of stand-out
performances. Her voice never seemed to waiver and the words were clear. Stowe
could have been stronger in the duet with Acosta but overall it was touching and
impressive.

Another wonderful performance was by Tamera Miller as Vi. Vi
was the pastor's wife and had one of the more emotional performances in the
musical. As other characters laughed and danced, Vi remained pensive yet hopeful
of seeing her husband return to his normal loving self. Miller set the mood with
her haunting dreamy rendition of "Learning to Be Silent". Miller was joined
by Meredith Stowe as Ariel and Jenna Hill as Ethel in this song. However, the
strength of Miller's singing far outshone those of Hill and Stowe. Miller's
performance of "Can You Find it in Your Heart?" was another beautiful song in
which she was able to capture the longing of the pastor's wife. Miller sang with
such feeling that you could feel it in your own heart. Miller conveyed in song
the longing of a grieving mother for her child but also for the husband who had
emotionally distanced himself.

Remi Budge did an amazing job as Willard.
Willard is the shy yet protective comic relief and best friend of Ren. When
Willard was learning to dance in Act II Scene I, the audience was laughing and
cheering. Budge did a wonderful job keeping a straight face as his friends
attempted to teach Willard how to dance. Additionally, Budge's performance of
the song "Mama Says" was one of the funniest of the entire musical.

Jenna Hill as Ethel, Ren's mother, did a great job. While her character
did not have a solo song, Hill was the inspiration behind Ren confronting
Reverend Shaw on a heart to heart basis. Hill's heartfelt and compassionate plea
for Ren to go after what he wanted was truly uplifting.

Cameron Allsup
did a fair job as Chuck, Ariel's ex-boyfriend. Chuck is a minor character in the
musical and not a true antagonist.

Allsup's rendition of "The Girl Gets
Around", was weak and often times his voice was completely drowned out by
the other singers or the music. His dancing was awkward and wooden. If the
character had completely disappeared after Act I Scene 3, I don't believe anyone
would have noticed.

Macy Rand played Rusty, Ariel's best-friend. Rand can
act and her best performance was when she was acting ditzy and in love with
Willard. Her tone and mannerisms were well played and believable. However,
Rand's "Let's Hear it for The Boys" was awkward and poorly sung. By the
finish of the song Rand seemed out of breath and struggled to finish the song.

Finally, Chuck Ellis played the dual role of Wes, brother-in-law to
Ethel, and Cowboy Bob. Ellis did an amazing job as Wes. His southernaccent
and his manner added depth to a supporting role. However, his song "Still
Rockin'" was simply sub-par. I'm not sure if it was intentionally designed to be
that bad or if it was just a bad day to be Bob. The song from the beginning
seemed off cue and often times the words were unintelligible.

Artisan
Center Theater's production of Footloose is a high energy, high- intensity
musical that dances onto the stage from the very first song and keeps on rocking
until the end. Footloose, directed by Dennis Canright, was an amazing and
enjoyable musical suitable for the entire family to enjoy. Everybody should "Cut
Loose" and dance on down to see this one.

Reviewed by Eric A. Maskell,
Associate Theater Critic for John Garcia's THE
COLUMN